Interview: Transit

With a different sound at every album, Boston-natives Transit are always evolving. Not only are they starting to tour again all over the world, but Transit will also be embarking on the entire run of the Vans Warped Tour. Which means if you aren’t keeping an eye out for them, it’s time to start. USD Radio caught up with members of Transit at the Hatfield date of the Slam Dunk Festival in the UK and talked about what makes Slam Dunk so special, a look back at their newest album, and what we can expect from them for the rest of the year.

Question: Why don’t we start by you introducing yourselves and what’s your role in Transit?

Joe Boynton: My name is Joe and I sing for Transit.

Torre Cioffi: My name is Torre. I play guitar and sing back-up.

Taken by Ed Mason

Q: Yesterday you guys played the Northern date for Slam Dunk, what’d you expect from it and what did you experience?

TC: Yesterday was amazing. We didn’t really know what to expect, especially being up against so many good bands. We haven’t been back in the UK since 2013, but there were people there- people going crazy. We had a fantastic time. You can’t ask for anything more than that.

Q: What do you think makes Slam Dunk so special?

JB: You know, it’s similar to Warped Tour. It’s the Warped Tour vibe with the English charm. The different types of personalities that you come across don’t exist anywhere else. It is its very own personality. And I think that that even exists- Warped Tour mixed with that -is a crazy concept. It’s beautiful and it’s very honest. You don’t feel overloaded with advertisements on the festival or anything like that. It just really seems to revolve around the music and just kids having a good time.

TC: Everyone is so welcoming too and super nice.

JB: And passionate. Very passionate kids.

TC: It’s completely different than at home. People suck back home.

JB: No they don’t.

TC: Yeah they do. But I don’t mean fans. I mean, overall people.

JB: Oh! General public. Yeah, it’s way different. They’re a lot more grumbly in the States.

Q: But then the English say that about themselves. They say Americans are so friendly.

JB: Oh I can explain that! When an English person goes to the States with their accent, Americans light up. And when Americans come to England with our accents, English people light up. You see people loving who you are because you’re just different. And I think that’s why the stories are the same, and they reflect themselves.

Q: Your newest album Joyride has been out for basically half a year now, what do you think about it now versus how you thought about it when it first came out or even when you were writing it.

JB: I still love it. It’s my favorite Transit record. While putting it together, there were moments I couldn’t believe, you know, “This is my band. This is what I get to be a part of.” I’m so happy with the end result. And when I here it now, and we play it, it feels like it’s brand new and it was just written. This is the longest time span that we’ve been a band where, for me at least, the magic of the song has stayed through playing and practicing and performing. Because you always get different ideas of what you would change in a song, and with this record, I can’t think of anything I would change.

TC: I still think it’s the best record we’ve put out so far.I think it’s going to be pretty hard to beat for the next record. We’re going to have to out-do ourselves for the next one.

Q: And have you been working on new material?

TC: We’ve been working on a few things. We’re always writing constantly. We have a few ideas and I think it’s going to be cool.

Q: And how do you think you’ve changed from this album from your first album?

JB: We might as well had been a metal band! It’s so different and love that it is because, oh my god, if we wrote the same-sounding records every time, we would be so sad. This would be a completely different interview. The fact that we get to put out whatever we feel, whatever genre, whatever we want, and people will come and sing along, it makes us feel like we’re flying through the air with happiness. We’re very, very fortunate to be a band like that.

Q: What’s your favorite city to play here in Europe and back home in the States?

TC: London, so far.

JB: Cardiff.

TC: Oh yeah, Cardiff. And London feels like being home in Boston, like that vibe. And back home, Boston, Philly, cities in California.

Q: Cool! And what’s a place you feel most inspired to create music?

JB: That is the hardest…no song has been written in the same place.

TC: Honestly…everywhere.

JB: I write songs at 4 AM, I write songs at 7 AM, I write songs in the middle of the day. I’ve written them in the van, I’ve written them in the green rooms at venues, I’ve written them outside, I’ve written them in the woods, I’ve written them on the beach. I’ve written them on bike rides. I’ve written them in the UK. But we haven’t gotten too far, because you don’t really know your surroundings. So you don’t want to go too far and get lost, you know, I can’t really use my phone half of the time. So the UK is pretty straight forward. I’ve written a song in a bar once. I was watching these two people interact before a show, and it was this couple like, fighting with each other. And it was really intense.

Q: Oh! What song was that?

JB: It was an older song. It was… oh man. It was a B-Side song that didn’t make it. It was suppose to be on Listen & Forgive. It was one that we really liked, but we didn’t record. It was like a back-and-forth conversation, and it was a really short song.

Q: Who’s a band or musician that has been impressing you lately?

JB: Big bands or small bands?

Q: Doesn’t matter which.

JB: The new Modest Mouse record. It is unbelievable. It’s got some of my favorite Modest Mouse songs. I’ve been listening to them since I was in high school. It unfortunately took all of my attention away from the new Death Cab For Cutie record. And I haven’t even listened to the entire Death Cab record because of how good- and I know it’s two different sounds- but I’ve really just been putting a lot of my listening time into the new Modest Mouse.

TC: I’m loving the new Ceremony record, and the new Turnover record.

Q: And what can we expect from you guys for the rest of 2015?

TC: We are doing Vans Warped Tour all summer. We will have a month off after that, then we’ll be doing another full U.S. tour throughout October and November. Then we’ll probably just being working on new material.

Q: Awesome! And last question, totally random, but if you had to pick one iPhone emoji to describe your life right now, what would it be?

JB: Is there at least one band that has gone to you and said, “What is that?”

Q: Yes! [Luke from] The Kooks.

JB: That’s awesome! There’s still people who still don’t know what those are.

Q: He knew them as emoticons.

JB: Isn’t there like, a steamy poop one? That one’s great.

TC: That one. [Points to an emoji.]

Q: Oh the excited face?

TC: I use that one a lot. Even if I’m just sending a smiling face I send that one that’s just cheesin’.

JB: Because of tour and because of being on the road for so long and being completely tired. I feel like the turd with the eyes and the mouth.

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